Alleged Columbia Chuck E Cheese’s shooter in court
***UPDATE 12:38 P.M.***
Lawyers finished closing arguments around noon Thursday, and the case is now with the jury.
***ORIGINAL STORY***
It has been a year since bullets riddled a packed Chuck E. Cheese’s in Columbia.
James T. Miller was 16 at the time, but on Wednesday, he went to court as an adult for his role as alleged gunman.
Police said he attempted to shoot a man inside the restaurant during a child’s birthday party. On Wednesday, a witness also connected the shooting to several other gang-related crimes last spring.
Miller’s cousin, Steffon White, testified against him. ABC 17 News found a lot of the people involved in his story are currently behind bars as suspects in various shootings and even a murder.
White said his brother, Larrell Banks, drove Miller that night. White was inside Chuck E. Cheese’s with Durantrae Logan at the time. Both are currently in jail for a separate murder last spring.
White talked about the intended victim in this case, Malcom Redmon, and how he and Redmon belong to two different groups of friends who did not like each other.
He said Miller and Redmon had been in a shooting at Southside Pizza days before this event. White also said Miller had a .45-caliber gun after the Chuck E. Cheese’s shooting, which is also the same kind of shells found on the scene.
White also claimed Miller said he was “mad he didn’t hit Harp,” which is Redmon’s slang name.
The defense tried to poke holes in White’s testimony Wednesday. They pointed out inconsistencies he told police and had White admit everyone lies, including him.
The defense tried to tarnish White’s credibility. Lawyers repeated the fact that White took a plea deal for his role in another shooting so he could testify in this case.
